It was a point which had been worrying Ramage since he first arrived off the coast: how could a lumbering frigate sink the fast and agile Saracens? Because it was a question of destroying them, not just driving them off. Drive them off today and they'll be back next week, or the week after, warier but just as determined.

Southwick gave an enormous sniff, and Ramage recognized it as the warning that he had an important pronouncement to make.

"We can't do it," he said. "There's no way. I don't usually say something is impossible, but there is no way we can stop forty boats - or even twenty - and destroy them, even if they are drawn up in a regular line of battle, which of course they won't be, being Saracens."

"I've been thinking the same thing for days," Ramage admitted.

"But so far I can see no alternative but to wade right into the middle of them and sink as many as we can."

"I don't think we'll sink many," Southwick said. "They're all fast and weatherly craft. Tartanes can eat their way to windward and those damned galleys can turn on a penny piece."

"Makes me think we shouldn't be at sea," Ramage said enigmatically.

The little port of Licata, some thirty miles along the coast, was the next place to visit. Nor was it difficult to find: it stood at the mouth of the Fiume Salso and a big castle, Castel San Angelo, was built on Monte Ecnomo on the western side of the town with the church of San Angelo, which had a very prominent cupola, on the eastern side.

The Calypso anchored off and Ramage went in with the cutter. He was surprised how small was Licata, and it seemed too unimportant for the Saraceni to raid. Nor had it been attacked. The mayor was a sturdy, grey-haired man who regarded Ramage as a saviour.

"When we heard every port had been attacked between here and Marsala," he said, "we gave ourselves up for lost. But then at the last minute you arrive with your great ship, Commandante. Our prayers have been answered just in time."

Ramage held up his hand to stop the man. "We can't do much against so many of their vessels," Ramage said. "We think they'll have about forty or more, and how can just one ship destroy them?"

The mayor looked crestfallen. "But you have such a big ship, and all they have will be tartanes and galleys."

"Yes, I know," Ramage said patiently, "but they are very agile. It would be like a man in a large boat with a trident trying to spear little fishes. You spear one but there are many more ..."

"Then send your men on shore and help us fight the Saraceni in the streets," the mayor said, and immediately Ramage knew his idea was a practical one, and he wished he had discussed it with Aitken and Southwick.

"How many people are there in Licata?" Ramage asked.

The mayor shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows? Perhaps four thousand, but maybe only three."

"How many men have you who can fight?"

"Fight? It will be mostly with swords and cudgels: I doubt if there are fifty fowling pieces in the whole town, and the powder for them is probably damp."

"Very well, how many with swords and cudgels?"

"Young men who can fight, perhaps two hundred. Most of our men are now old and decrepit; not fit for much more than sitting in the sun and puffing a pipe."

"And what about water?"

"Plenty - we have two good wells. Why?"

"If I land a hundred men they can bring provisions but they'll need water. Not just for a day or two but every day until the Saraceni arrive. If they arrive, that is."

"They'll come," the mayor said grimly. "They're picking off the ports like ripe oranges. We're the next to last one along this south coast. They'll come all right."

He is right, Ramage told himself, and nodded. "Yes, I think they'll come - in six or seven days."

The mayor looked puzzled. "What makes you so sure? Why not tomorrow, or the next day?"

Ramage explained the timetable for the previous raids, and how it seemed that the Saraceni needed twelve days or so to take the prisoners back to their base and return to the coast of Sicily. Empedocle had been raided three days before the Calypso arrived, and the frigate had taken a day to get here because of light winds, making four days in all since the raid on Empedocle.

The mayor was now getting excited: he had been living with the thought of a Saracen raid for so long that he had given up hope; now Ramage's arrival had changed everything.

Ramage interrupted his spate of excited speculation with a harsh remark. "We must destroy these men, every one of them. There is no point in driving them off. Drive them off and they'll be back again in days or weeks."

"Yes, yes, we must trap them," the mayor exclaimed.

Ramage nodded. "I am going back to my ship to make plans," he said. "Be patient; I shall return."

CHAPTER TEN

Ramage's cabin was crowded: as usual Southwick sat in the armchair, Aitken, Kenton and Martin were crowded together on the settee and Hill and Rennick stood either side of the door, their beads canted because of the low headroom.

Ram age looked up from his desk and said without any preliminaries: "There's little doubt that Licata will be the next target for the Saracens, probably in about eight days' time."

With the exception of the first lieutenant and master, the rest of the officers looked startled; as though their captain had started fortune telling. Ramage immediately noticed and went on to explain how he had reached that conclusion.

As Ramage finished with his estimate of the number of vessels that the Saracens would have, Hill said: "How are we going to tackle that number, sir?"

"We aren't," Ramage said shortly. "There's no way we can. In other words we can't deal with them at sea."

He stopped with that remark and it was left to Hill to echo, questioningly, the phrase: "At sea?"

"Yes," Ramage said briskly. "We've got to destroy these damned pirates, and the only way we can do it is trap them on shore. They might outnumber us - probably will - but we'll have to make up for that with surprise.

"I intend landing every Marine and seaman that can be spared, and every carronade and boat gun we have. We will mount the guns where they will do the most harm - in houses covering quays, places like that - and the men will be billeted in the houses, armed with muskets and pistols, along with pikes and cutlasses.

"The Calypso will then disappear over the horizon: we don't want her presence to frighten off the Saracens. She will return every few days and look for a signal flying from the Castel San Angelo - that's the big castle you can see on the hill overlooking the town - but unless the signal is flying, to show that it's all over, she will go out to sea again and disappear over the horizon."

He put his hands flat on the desk. "I have had a difficult time selecting officers because some of you are bound to be disappointed. But we must remember that our primary concern is the safety of the ship; the operation against the Saracens is our secondary concern. Therefore, Mr Aitken will command the ship and Mr Southwick will go with him.

"Mr Rennick will, of course, command the detachment of Marines and Sergeant Ferris will be his second-in-command. Lieutenants Kenton, Martin and Hill will command detachments of seamen and the guns they will handle.

"My headquarters will be in the castle because that is the best place for seeing what's going on. And there's no doubt I will be able to see - the Saracens raid in daylight; or at least they have so far.

"One last thing for now," Ramage added harshly. "We are dealing with barbarians. I am not interested in prisoners. I warn you, if you are taken prisoner by the Saracens, then you'll spend the rest of your life chained to the oar of a galley. Any questions?"